CHAPTER 30

CHAPTER 3 0

MYRA

A desperate need

THE FOYER OF Julianus's house was warm and moody and furnished with a dark wooden bench and a round table on which sat an empty cut glass vase. I wondered about that, if he had someone who came in regularly and cleaned the house and filled the vase with flowers. From what I could see, the place appeared immaculate, no dustbunnies near the baseboards or cobwebs in the corners. Just a big, well-lived-in old house.

I followed him past the staircase to another arched doorway, this one topped with a wide transom with a stained glass insert. Below it were tall carved pocket doors which he slid open to reveal a spacious, paneled sitting room. The arched, floor-to-ceiling windows that faced the front of the house were also stained glass, flanked by heavy gold draperies. A low fire burned in the marble hearth, with an antique cherry wood seating group arranged in front of it. Julianus headed for the brocade settee and sat, taking my hand and pulling me down beside him.

"I feel like I've stepped back in time," I said, looking around.

"It is very well-preserved. That's what attracted me to the house."

"Do you like old things?"

Despite his quick smile, there was a sadness in his eyes. "I like things that connect me to the past. Maybe someday I'll let go of that and embrace this era, but for now this gives me comfort."

It seemed a strange thing for a young man to say, but then, I reminded myself, he was European and probably grew up around historical buildings. Maybe this made him feel closer to home.

"I'd show you around, but the house can be very cold. This and my bedroom are the only rooms where the fireplace works."

"I can imagine heating an old house this size would be an undertaking," I agreed. "Is it just you living here?"

He nodded. "I know what you're thinking. It's a lot of house for one person, but I like large spaces. I'd feel claustrophobic in a small house."

He was still holding my hand, and now raised it to his lips, his eyes holding mine while he planted a warm kiss across my knuckles. "You're the first person I've ever brought here."

I wasn't sure how to respond to that. "Surely there have been other women…"

He smiled. "Of course, but none I've cared to bring home. You…you're special. "

I still couldn't wrap my head around what he meant by that. A man like him, with his looks and obvious wealth, had probably met dozens of women in his life. He barely knew me. Why did he think I was special among all of them?

"Don't take this the wrong way, but I find that hard to believe."

"That you're special?"

"That you think I am."

He leaned closer, his scent overwhelming me in the heated space. The whole room smelled of him, of his presence. Everywhere I looked I saw him, from the golden glow of the ceramic lamps to the thick patterned rug under foot to the leatherbound volumes on the bookcases that flanked the fireplace. It was all Julianus. This was who he was, how he lived his daily life. This is what he woke up to every day.

The thought of that made everything seem real finally. Before he had just been this fantasy to me, a lover I had conjured in my imagination. A drawing I had created from a fevered memory. This…this was reality, and it was coming at me too fast. I pulled my hand away and tried to stand, but the room spun around me and I collapsed back on the couch.

"Myra! Are you all right?"

He scooted back on the settee to give me room to lie back, his expression knotted with concern.

"I'm fine, really. Just a little light-headed."

He frowned. "When's the last time you ate?"

I thought about the abandoned muffin in the cafeteria this morning and grimaced. "Dinner last night…with you."

"I should have taken you to get something to eat."

"No, really, I'll be fine. I think I have a pack of crackers in my purse. "

He reached down to pick up the purse where I had set it on the floor and handed it to me. I rummaged around inside and came up with the packet. It was a little crushed from being carried around for what was probably a month, but there were still a few whole crackers in there. My dad had always insisted I carry something to eat on me since I was bad about skipping meals. You're too thin, Myra. You've got to eat more regularly.

I opened the packet and shoved a cracker into my mouth. "See? Eating."

He shook his head. "That's not good enough. I'd offer to make you something, but I don't have any food in the house. I usually…dine out."

He was no doubt having second thoughts about me being special right now. What kind of woman almost faints in a man's house? I sat up and gathered myself, taking another cracker out of the pack and biting into it.

"Finish them," he admonished. "I can make you some tea, if you'd like."

"No," I said, grabbing his arm as he started to rise. "Don't go to any trouble for me. I'm already embarrassed enough."

"Why would you be embarrassed?"

"Because I don't have sense enough to eat when I'm supposed to."

He sighed and reached up to tuck a stray hair behind my ear, his fingers grazing my cheek. "I've been guilty of ignoring my own appetite a time to two," he grinned. "Especially when it comes to you."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, the times you've seen me in town I was on my way to find something to eat and got distracted by you."

"Honestly, I don't understand why. "

"Why I'm attracted to you?"

I nodded.

He was thoughtful, as though choosing his words carefully. "At first you reminded me of someone I used to know."

"Oh. And now?"

"Now I've gotten to know you a little better and can see you for yourself." He moved closer, his face inches from mine. "I can't stop thinking about you."

When he kissed me, it was tentative at first, as though he was testing to see how I would react. I swallowed the rest of the cracker and licked my lips. "Sorry."

"Don't be. I told you to eat." His arm encircled me, pulling me closer to him, his mouth smothering mine, and once again I had that impression of drowning in him. He overwhelmed me, filling my senses and short-circuiting my brain until it was impossible to think beyond the feel of his lips on mine, his body pressed to me, the touch of his hands that sent shivers through my veins.

When his tongue dipped inside my mouth, I moaned against him and threw myself into the kiss. I could feel the ache stirring between my legs and tried to will his fingers to find it. As if reading my mind, his hand drifted down my arm, sliding over to caress my breast before inching lower, resting on my thigh then slipping into my crease.

"I can feel your heat," he breathed against my lips, his hand spreading my legs to give him better access. He pressed his palm against me, massaging my pussy until I began to grind against his hand.

"I think we should take this somewhere more comfortable. "

When I nodded, he pulled me to my feet and led me out of the room toward the staircase. "If you can't make it up the stairs, I'll be happy to carry you."

I bit my lip and shook my head, unsure if he was teasing. "I can walk."

"Good, because you'll need to be in full control of your body for what I'm about to do to you."

When we began to climb the stairs, I couldn't stop myself from asking," What do you mean?"

He didn't answer until we were on the second floor and had walked down a dimly-lit hallway to what was obviously his bedroom. He pulled me inside and pressed me against the wall, his breath a steady rumble, his lips again seeking mine.

"You've ruined me since I met you. Now I'm going to return the favor."

He pushed my coat off my shoulders then slid his hands down to grab the hem of my dress, pulling it up over my body. I slipped my arms out and ducked my head under it, then he tossed it next to my coat on the floor and stood back to look at me.

"Lovely."

He leaned in, his lips grazing mine as his fingers danced beneath the straps of my bra. Before I could register the move, he had unclasped it and pulled it down my arms, exposing my breasts. I was embarrassed by my size, knowing I probably didn't measure up to the other women he'd been with, but he bent over and first lapped at, then sucked my nipple into his mouth, tonguing it into a hard knot that pulled at the ache between my legs. I arched my back, thrusting forward to receive his attention, lost in the sensations he was creating in my body. His hand twisted into the thin strap of fabric at the side of my panties and yanked them down, leaving me at once naked and exposed.

I shivered under his gaze, afraid to meet his eyes and see disappointment there. He reached a finger up under my chin and lifted my head, his breath brushing against my skin as he whispered, "You're beautiful."

I tried to shake my head, to deny his claim, but he held fast, pulling my face up to his while his other hand slid down my abdomen to slip between my legs. His lips were soft against mine, his mouth insistent, his tongue seeking mine; probing, tasting, devouring. I melted against him and he inched me away from the wall and toward the bed while his fingers slipped inside me with a touch as deft as any artist.

He pushed me down onto the bed, breaking contact for the first time as he stepped back and began to undress. First his jacket, then his shirt. I watched, unaware that I held my breath as his defined arms and smooth chest were revealed to me. Lean and muscular, his body tapered down to narrow hips and a perfect vee that disappeared into his low-slung pants. He had the physique of a runner, all sharp angles like his face. I bit my lip when his hand slipped inside the waistband of his pants and unbuttoned and unzipped them, slowly sliding them down while his eyes held mine with a smoldering heat.

He wore no underwear, so he was immediately naked. I had never seen a man's cock in person. I had felt his the night before when he fucked me in the alley, but I had not seen it. It was long and thick and heavy, the uncircumcised head already glistening with pre-cum.

"Like what you see?" he murmured as he prowled closer, his movements catlike, his full lips curling up in the same smirk I'd seen on him the first night when he caught me watching him through the window of the bar .

He stopped in front of me, standing between my legs, his cock inches from my face, and I wondered what it would feel like in my mouth. I licked my lips, suddenly wanting more than anything to reach out with my tongue and taste him.

"What are you thinking, cuore mio ?" He pressed closer, the distance between us as short as a breath. His hand wrapped around his growing erection and brought it closer to my mouth. "Taste it. Let me feel those sweet lips wrapped around my cock."

I looked up at him, meeting eyes that had bled almost to black, and reached out tentatively with my tongue, lapping at the silky skin. He groaned deep in his throat, emboldening me, and I opened my mouth to allow him to slide inside while swirling my tongue around his head. He tasted salty and sweet at the same time with a hint of the musk that flavored his scent, and I suddenly couldn't get enough of it. I closed my lips around him, sucking him in deeper, my tongue circling his length, a feeling of pride washing over me as his breath was reduced to short gasps. Knowing I was the one doing that to him.

He began to murmur in Italian as his hands tunneled through my hair and pulled me toward him, forcing his cock deeper into my mouth. When he hit the back of my throat I gagged and pulled back, and he released the pressure in my neck until I could breathe again. After recovering, I eagerly sucked him back in. I had never felt such power over another person before, and I found it intoxicating. I sucked harder, my tongue teasing at his head, working its way inside his slit until he was rocking against me, his head thrown back in the throes of passion, as close as I had ever seen him to losing control.

"Oh fuck," he groaned and pulled away. "If you keep doing that, I'll be over before we start. "

I smiled up at him, pleased with myself while mourning the sudden emptiness of my mouth. He narrowed his eyes and bent down to press his lips against mine.

"I thought you were a virgin before last night."

"I was."

"Then when did you learn to do that?"

"Just now."

He chuckled. "You're a natural. Makes me wonder what other devious tricks you've got up your sleeve." He wrapped his arms around my back and moved me to where I was centered on the bed before crawling up between my legs. "My turn."

I thought I would die when his tongue touched my pussy, and then he burrowed it inside and started to lick and suck my clit. I threw my head back and closed my eyes, giving myself over to the sensations that were rippling through me.

"Eyes on me," he ordered, reaching up to grab my chin and force me to watch him. I squirmed on the bed, fisting the covers while fighting to do as he said, but it was the hardest thing I had ever done. He wrapped his hands around my ankles to hold me in place while his tongue continued to work its relentless magic on my pussy. Within minutes I was making sounds I didn't recognize.

I felt myself tensing, the pleasure wrapping around me so tightly I thought I would burst. My hips thrashed away from him then moved back. I wanted him to stop while hoping he never would, the pressure building to an excruciating level. When he groaned against me, the vibration sent me over the edge. I came hard, my vision blurring, my breath caught in my throat, my heart threatening to pound out of my chest. Wave after wave rolled over me, taking me under, leaving me feeling hollowed out and fulfilled at the same time .

Julianus flicked his tongue over my clit one last time, sending another toe-curling shudder through me, before pushing up on his hands and knees, his expression reminding me of a wanton beast. He crawled his way up my body, his eyes holding mine, his thick cock hanging heavy between his legs.

"Now, cuore mio, I'm going to fuck you so hard that sweet pussy of yours will never forget who owns it. Do you understand?"

I nodded, my eyes locked on his, my breath hitching. He positioned the head of his cock against my opening and teased my lips. I whimpered and arched my back, wanting him inside me now, but he held back, his grin turning feral.

"So impatient. Good, I like you hungry for me."

When he finally entered me, if was swift and brutal. I gasped and felt tears prick my eyes at the sudden change. His breath was hot on my neck, his deep voice whispering words I didn't understand as he began a slow pounding assault on my body. It felt like his cock was so deep inside me it would hit the back of my throat, and still he dug for more. I surprised myself by meeting each thrust head on, my lustful moans sounding foreign to my ears.

There was nothing gentle or loving about this coupling. He wasn't treating me like the fragile flower everyone thought I was. He was fucking me, animalistic and frenzied, and while I would never have thought I would like something like that, I couldn't get enough of him.

When I came, I screamed his name while the spasms rolled over me, and still he continued to pound me, chasing his own release. Never giving me the chance to come down from mine, instead building me right back up again until I was sure I would come apart. I mumbled all sorts of nonsense– stop, don't stop, kill me, drown me. Fuck me. Harder . His laughter was pure wickedness in my ear, his mouth rotating between verbal encouragement and assaulting mine.

I could feel another orgasm building, this one bigger than the last two, threatening to drown me under that wave of pleasure.

"Are you ready for me, cuore mio?" he growled against me. I felt him stiffen, his movements quickening, his breath a harsh pant as he shoved his cock hard inside me.

"Fuck," he groaned as his hot seed filled me. Hearing him come undone sent me over the edge, my pussy clenching around his cock, and for a moment we were both lost in our own pleasure.